Artist Name: Chad Fay Robinson. Title: Everything with you Genre: Instrumental Rock Rating:
Equipment
DAW – PC with the latest version of Pro Tools; Interface–Universal Audio Apollo; Monitors – Neumann KH 120; Headphones – Sony MDR-7506;
Preamps – BAE 1073, Rupert Neve Designs Shelford Channel Pre; Microphones – Warm Audio WA-87, Chandler Limited TG, Neumann KM 184;
Instruments – Breedlove Acoustic Guitar, Charvel Pro-Mod San Dimas Bass, Gibson Les Paul Electric; Keys – Pro Tools Xpand!2; Drums – Toontrack EZdrummer; Plugins – Waves, Universal Audio, Valhalla and PRS Amp simulation.
Music
“Everything with you” is a rock ballad by singer/songwriter Chad Fay Robinson. Robinson played all the instruments and mixed and mastered the track in his home studio. “Everything with you” started in Chad Robinson’s kitchen while he was watching his wife cook. His wife liked the song, so he finished it and headed to the studio to record. Chad allowed the song to influence his production decisions, giving it a lovely organic vibe to the arrangement that suits the lyrics well. The final mix sounds like a love song written about someone who was in the room. That’s very cool.
Review By Dave Martin
Robinson made some nice engineering choices. His acoustic guitar tracks—one of which was recorded with a Neumann KM 184 through a BAE 1073 preamp and the other with a Warm Audio WA-87, were played on a Breedlove acoustic. A Gibson Les Paul, recorded through a PRS Amp simulator, plays a nice supporting role. a Charvel bass, an EZdrummer drum track and some virtual instrument sounds from Pro Tools Xpand!2 plugin complete the picture. The vocals, recorded with a Chandler TG microphone through a Rupert Neve Designs Shelford Channel, have a present, airy sound. I want to comment on the reverb that was chosen for this mix; Robinson primarily used the UA EMT140 and UA RealVerb, along with a bit of a Valhalla reverb. The combination of these verbs added a definite ambiance without muddying up the track.
Dave’s Suggestions
The feeling that I get from “Everything with you” is the kind of intimate and personal love song that a singer/songwriter might put on an album, or it might be a demo intended to be pitched to other artists. The relatively sparse instrumentation leaves room for a producer (or artist) to imagine what their own treatment of the song might be. As it stands, it works for either purpose.
From a mixing perspective, I wish that the bass was a little louder. What I hear might fit the artist’s vision, or it could be a result of the mixing environment.
In a home studio, it is common to have spots in a room that are low-end heavy (which can cause the engineer to turn the bass down) and/or spots where low frequencies disappear, which can make you turn the bass up in a mix. Addressing room treatment and precise placement of both the speakers and the listening position can mitigate such problems. However, in smaller rooms, especially those with two or more identical dimensions, peculiar hot spots may emerge where certain frequencies become pronounced. I’ve known home studio owners that put a piece of tape on the floor to mark the best place to put their chairs. In the short term, though, I would counsel Chad to listen to the mixes in a few different environments—other rooms, other systems, even in a car—to make sure that the bass level is where he wants it to be.
Chad Fay Robinson describes “Everything with you” as a rock song, but honestly, I hear it simply as a good song; with one style of production, the song could rock, with another, it could be a pop song, a roots music/Americana song or even a country song.
Summary
I like “Everything with you.” It’s a sweet song and well recorded. I recommend that you also listen to more of Chad Fay Robinson’s tunes on YouTube at www.youtube.com/@chadfayrobinson7537; you might become a Chad Fay Robinson fan!
Dave Martin is a producer, engineer and bassist. Dave owned Nashville’s Java Jive Studio for close to 25 years. Dave has recorded, produced and/or played with symphony orchestras, rock and roll icons and country music legends ranging from the Old Crow Medicine Show, The Dead Pickers Society, Porter Wagoner, Robben Ford, Billy Cobham, The Box Tops, Carl Verheyen, Richie Faulkner (Judas Priest), Adrian Belew, Rick Nielsen (Cheap Trick), Eric Johnson, Robbie Fulks, Steve Vai, The Coasters and others. Dave is also a member of the Western Swing Hall of Fame.